Ten Common and Costly Hold'em Errors - Part IV

This column concludes the discussion of my list of "Ten Common and Costly Limit Hold'em Errors." The box below summarizes them.

This column will focus on two errors on the river.

On the river, the best hand is already decided. One player has it and will take the pot unless he folds. Certainly, there are plays to make the best hand fold, but failure to make them cannot be classified as errors (although they may be lost opportunities). River betting comes down to winning or losing an extra bet or two.



Most of the errors that you will see on the river come from a simple failure to bet. I have highlighted two of the most common. But first, I want to say a few words about betting the river in general.



Several texts offer accurate mathematical models regarding betting on the river, particularly when heads up. I would like to extend this topic beyond the mathematical, to the effect your bet has on an opponent.



Consider the situation when someone bets on the river and the opponent goes into a long study. Already, this bet has done a lot of good:



• The opponent clearly thinks he has a tough decision to make, and he may make the wrong one occasionally, or even frequently.



• The opponent is wasting brain energy on this decision that he could have conserved if the bet had not been made.

There are other psychological benefits, as well. If opponents fold, even correctly, you have put a measure of uncertainty in their minds. Maybe you were bluffing. If you bet the river three or four times and win with no call, the suspicion grows deeper, even if you were simply betting the best hand each time. Now, when you bet the river the fifth time with a decent hand, you might get called by a player with a very weak hand who simply cannot stand it anymore and wants to look you up.



Several texts point out that you should not bet when the only hands that can call you must have you beat. This is entirely true, but in a game like hold'em, opponents are free to imagine all sorts of holdings or invent bluffs they can beat. The probability that you will be called only when you are beat goes down considerably. I have oftentimes seen people who were trying to bluff get called and win the pot. You just never really know what an opponent might put you on, and with what hand he will decide he just has to call.



Even when you bet a marginal hand and lose, there is value. Opponents who see you make marginal value bets on the river are more likely to pay off your good hands, which will certainly be most of your river bets.



In fact, the real reason people like to check the river is emotional. They simply feel worse losing the extra bet than they feel good winning one. (I expect to discuss this subject in great detail in a column very soon.)



The errors I am going to discuss in this column happen when you are out of position. In the first, you have been betting throughout. In the second, you have been calling with a draw, and get there.



9. Not Betting When Leading Out Throughout The Hand: After two limpers, you call the blind with the K Q. The button calls, as does the small blind. On the flop of K 6 2, you bet after everyone checks. The button and the big blind call. The turn is the 9. You bet and only the button calls. The river is the A. Should you check or bet?



Certainly, you cannot be pleased to see that ace. If your opponent has one, you will lose the pot. Could he have an ace? Sure, he easily could have A-X of clubs and have just gotten lucky. If you check and he has an ace, he will always bet, you will call, and you will lose one more bet. If you check and he has a king, he will probably check and you will win the pot. If he has most anything else, he will also check and you will win, although he might occasionally bluff.



If you bet and he has an ace, he will call and you will lose the same bet. He would raise if he has a hand like the A 6, but that holding is a remote possibility. If he has a king, though, he will still call, and now you will win a bet. But what if he has a hand like the 7 6? He called on the flop, hoping you were betting a flush draw. Now, with six and a half big bets in the pot, he has to call one more to see if you were bluffing. He will convince himself to make this call fairly frequently.



If he has pocket tens, he will not like it, but he will call once in a while. And if he has a busted flush draw, he will fold and you will not have to show your hand, adding a tiny bit of mystery to your play.



All in all, if you bet in situations like this, you will lose the bet every time you are beat, but you also would probably lose that bet if you check, planning to call. You gain a bet every time your opponent calls, which he would not do if you checked. Remember, people invent the most amazing reasons to call with losing hands. This single change to your game will net you many extra bets.



10. Not Betting After Making Your Hand: You have checked and called on the flop and turn while an opponent has been betting vigorously. On the river, you make your hand, typically a straight or a flush. He has been betting so strongly that you decide to wait for a check-raise. So, you check your big hand and he checks behind you. You are still waiting.



This scenario repeats itself many times a day – and it is almost always wrong. When you make your hand, bet. Most often, you will get a crying call and win a bet. On rare occasions, you will get raised and have an opportunity to reraise. Remember, betting wins one bet or three, while check-raising wins no bets or two. I prefer betting.



But there is yet another reason to bet out. You get to retain something called "bluff equity." If your opponents become conditioned to the fact that when you make your hand you will bet, eventually they will occasionally fold when you bet the river. Now, you can successfully bluff on the river when you fail to make your hand and have nothing, or when you have a hand that's worth a crying call.



If you are known as a frequent check-raiser, you will not have credibility when you do bet when a scare card comes. Your opponent will realize that if you really made a big hand, you probably would have checked. But if you are known as a frequent bettor in this situation, you will induce enough folds to make a very nice profit.



Of course, you still need balance, so you must sometimes check a made hand just to keep your opponents from betting every time you check. But this should be seldom, rather than often.



We all love to look smart and make the clever play. But in this case, as in so many others in poker, the boring straightforward play will make the money and have the best chance of giving you long-run credibility. Most often, when you make your hand, bet.



Conclusion: This concludes this four-part series. The 10 errors discussed occur in every phase of play. If you can simply avoid these specific mistakes, you will find significant profits coming your way.

Barry offers poker lessons tailored to the specific strengths and weaknesses of the individual student. Please visit his web site at www.barrytanenbaum.com.